Joe771476 Posted July 30, 2008 Share Posted July 30, 2008 Lincoln Town Car still reigns supreme in the limo category; Mercury Grand Marquis is the most popular large car in Florida; Crown Vics have been the most popular taxis and cruisers. Does anyone know how many units per year we're talking and what Ford will use to replace those numbers? I don't think you can stretch an MKS for limo purposes! And don't forget all the free advertising Ford gets when you see all those Crown Vics in "The Closer" and "Law & Order." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deanh Posted July 30, 2008 Share Posted July 30, 2008 Lincoln Town Car still reigns supreme in the limo category; Mercury Grand Marquis is the most popular large car in Florida; Crown Vics have been the most popular taxis and cruisers. Does anyone know how many units per year we're talking and what Ford will use to replace those numbers? I don't think you can stretch an MKS for limo purposes! And don't forget all the free advertising Ford gets when you see all those Crown Vics in "The Closer" and "Law & Order." yup...those product placements in TV series just makes one want to go out and SNAP one up.....limos are a MINUTE part of the market, taxis are slowly being mandated to become clean air or hybrids ( hybrid transit connect would be perfect ) popular cruisers?????? judging by how long they stayed on our lots when they were avail to non fleet customers I would question that statement, now all the car appeals to are those after CHEAP used vehicles with redoubtable reliability backgrounds, elderly people that do not walk or deviate off the traditionalist line one iota, municipalities and Pseudo undercover cops...it was a great car in its day, the replacement is apparently in the wings ( GRWD...complete with UP TO DATE DRIVETRAINS, mandated safety, IRS, NVH dynamics etc ) and truth be told I do not know if a unibody lends itself to the required limo stretch..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardJensen Posted July 30, 2008 Share Posted July 30, 2008 1) Re: L&O, Closer, etc. I'm positive that, for 99.999% of the population, those vehicles do NOT register as Fords. They register as 'cop cars'. Now the Explorers that are sometimes shown as detective's cars in L&O might move the needle for a buyer or two, but certainly not the cruisers. They could switch them to Impalas or Chargers and most people would hardly notice. Heck, they could probably change them to anything short of Smart cars and most people wouldn't notice. 2) Units per year retail is about 20% of all panther volume, generously. 3) The Town Car stretch limo market is going away. More and more often SUVs are being stretched. OTOH, I believe that the MKS or possibly a LWB variant will offer a perfect 'executive car' or 'black car' replacement for the Town Car. Fitted with 18-19" wheels, given the D3.5's outboard shocks and non-Mac strut rear end, the ride should be better than the TC. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMarc Posted July 30, 2008 Share Posted July 30, 2008 (edited) Lincoln Town Car still reigns supreme in the limo category; Mercury Grand Marquis is the most popular large car in Florida; Crown Vics have been the most popular taxis and cruisers. Does anyone know how many units per year we're talking and what Ford will use to replace those numbers? I don't think you can stretch an MKS for limo purposes! And don't forget all the free advertising Ford gets when you see all those Crown Vics in "The Closer" and "Law & Order." Ford could advertise them as one of the most fuel efficient highway cruisers on the planet. But no, they rather go a more expensive route. I love my Panther and probably will leave Ford after they kill them. Look what they did to the Diesel SD. You can only be loyal for so long. Truck will be a dodge Diesel and car a Honda Accord diesel. Edited July 30, 2008 by GMarc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GT40 2 Posted July 30, 2008 Share Posted July 30, 2008 ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deanh Posted July 30, 2008 Share Posted July 30, 2008 Ford could advertise them as one of the most fuel efficient highway cruisers on the planet.But no, they rather go a more expensive route. I love my Panther and probably will leave Ford after they kill them. Look what they did to the Diesel SD. You can only be loyal for so long. Truck will be a dodge Diesel and car a Honda Accord diesel. true...there can NEVER be a better car than the vnerable Panthers...impossible...they should make them FOREVER...its as thoroughly modern today as it was in 1950 to boot, technology and customer demands, wants and needs have not changed since the Model T, which by the way was eco friendly and got 5 star crash ratings once side air bags were added along with a PZEV badge on the front fender and a EPA rating of 42mpg's....there is absolutely NO need for progress...something I am in entire agreement with.....things should just be left alone and shame on those competitors that develop new superior better selling product...thats just STUPID! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deanh Posted July 30, 2008 Share Posted July 30, 2008 (edited) side bar...funnily enough but everytime a thread starts up about Panthers i get the dreaded Grey screen w CPU has met its quota..... Edited July 30, 2008 by Deanh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alcibiades Posted July 30, 2008 Share Posted July 30, 2008 I think most people would be willing to agree that the Panther is outdated, and that a modern replacement vehicle would be good. What worries me is there Ford may not provide a modern replacement, but instead will try to shoehorn a FWD platform like the D3 into the Panther market. Ford may yet turn the D3 into a success (or may not), but I question whether it will ever be a success as a police car, taxi, or limo. Can't Ford build a modern RWD vehicle, like GM, Chrysler, BMW, Nissan, Lexis, etc.? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deanh Posted July 30, 2008 Share Posted July 30, 2008 I think most people would be willing to agree that the Panther is outdated, and that a modern replacement vehicle would be good. What worries me is there Ford may not provide a modern replacement, but instead will try to shoehorn a FWD platform like the D3 into the Panther market. Ford may yet turn the D3 into a success (or may not), but I question whether it will ever be a success as a police car, taxi, or limo. Can't Ford build a modern RWD vehicle, like GM, Chrysler, BMW, Nissan, Lexis, etc.? Apparently ( and gets mentioned on EVERY thread bleating about the Panthers demise ) it has been and IS being developed in conjunction with Ford of Australia....titled GRWD I beleive...remains to be seen I suppose, but I would think Ford is eyeing more pressing issues as of late ie Compact fuel efficient cars, the eco-boost engines etc etc....GRWD may be a little on the backburner..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
156n3rd Posted July 30, 2008 Share Posted July 30, 2008 Just relegate the CV to police cruiser status only, nothing sold to anyone else. Bring over a Falcon or something else. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deanh Posted July 30, 2008 Share Posted July 30, 2008 Just relegate the CV to police cruiser status only, nothing sold to anyone else. Bring over a Falcon or something else. CV HAS been relegated to fleet only...is NOT avail to the general public at all...and YES bring the Falcon, if only to silence the whiners.....course then the contention would be why aren't they as cheap as a 200 year old platform?????? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taxman100 Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 I'll just keeping buying them on the used car market. Actually, Ford has put so little effort into the vehicle that there is really little reason to buy them new. I'll buy a new one in their last model year since they will be going away, but I have no interest in any "world car" cobbed together on the cheap because Ford is broke. By the way, the front shocks on my 2002 Grand Marquis will also fit my 67 Galaxie. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardJensen Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 I question whether it will ever be a success as a police car, taxi, or limo. See above: cars aren't being stretched anymore, taxis are going green, and the D3 will make a better police cruiser than the flimsy (I've seen their build quality first hand) LX cars. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomServo92 Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 The Mayan calendar predicts that the world will end in the year 2012. The Panthers are due to end production very soon. Coincidence? :P Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
syrtran Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 The Mayan calendar predicts that the world will end in the year 2012. The Panthers are due to end production very soon. Coincidence? :P Wait, the MAYANS have been buying all the Panthers??!!?! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
papilgee4evaeva Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 Wait, the MAYANS have been buying all the Panthers??!!?! But the Mayans are all but gone... or assimilated... :reading: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twintornados Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 http://300c.blogspot.com/2005/12/stretch-300c-limousine.html Stretch limo...unibody construction....it can be done, and has been done..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
630land Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 (edited) The only market left is police cars, and unibody ones have been done successfully by Mopar for years. I can see Ford making the next Explorers into cop rides. Police agencies are moving away from 'hot pursuits' to avoid lawsuits. They can use choppers, or sports cars if need to chase. Edited July 31, 2008 by 630land Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ANTAUS Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 I do know that the Caddy Deville hearses, as well as the Presidential Limo, which supposedly is styled as a DTS, are still on BOF. I wouldn't doubt if the BOF Limo variants of the TC will continue for a few years after the fact. Maybe at some point a Ranger-like BOF platform, or whatever other compact BOF truck Ford decides to build, might be tweaked (for their use) by stretching it for Limo Purposes and keep everything from the dashboard, forward...intact. It'll require some integration. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
armadamaster Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 (edited) Lincoln Town Car still reigns supreme in the limo category; Mercury Grand Marquis is the most popular large car in Florida; Crown Vics have been the most popular taxis and cruisers. Does anyone know how many units per year we're talking and what Ford will use to replace those numbers? I don't think you can stretch an MKS for limo purposes! And don't forget all the free advertising Ford gets when you see all those Crown Vics in "The Closer" and "Law & Order." The short answer is nothing will replace them. I think Ford will try to shoehorn cabbies into an Escape, we'll see how long that lasts. The D3 will be the other failed attempt at the rest of the livery/police market since it's failed everywhere else and Ford will continue endlessly sinking money into it for the foreseeable future since I guess they are so upside down on it now it's doesn't much matter anymore. Police will divide the market up evenly between Chargers and WImpalas, the Chargers for county/state guys and the WImps for the metro areas. All will cost more to maintain and never fill the niche appropriately, and Ford will be the loser on ultimately like GM lost out on that lock in the late 1990's with the cancellation of the B-body. side bar...funnily enough but everytime a thread starts up about Panthers i get the dreaded Grey screen w CPU has met its quota..... Don't you know, myself and P71_Crownvic start up all the Panthers threads on here. Speaking of which, I'm suprised he hasn't weighed in on this one... Edited July 31, 2008 by Armada Master Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ford Jellymoulds Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 Gotta say l was gutted we never got Crown Vic in the UK, maybe Alan Mulally need to bring a 40 MPG 1959 Anglia Stateside now to help you out with CAFE numbers, gotta say l prefered the Checker to the Crown Vic though they were spacious. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 but I have no interest in any "world car" cobbed together on the cheap because Ford is broke. :huh: Using a global platform means it's cobbed together because Ford is broke? Guess you wouldn't be interested in any Lexus or Mercedes that uses a global platform either then? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rscalzo Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 Just relegate the CV to police cruiser status only, nothing sold to anyone else Sad to say but the days of the CV reigning supreme in the police market is fading. After 14 years, we have started the conversion over to the Magnum. The savings in gas does mount up as does the small cost per vehicle. The bigger guys would love to hang on to the CV but that just isn't an option. As pointed out, even the area taxi companies have switched to vans or smaller Suva's such as the Escape. It will be interesting to see if FM produces a replacement. It would be sad to see them out of the LE market completely outside of the Explorer/Expedition Special Service vehicles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suv_guy_19 Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 Sad to say but the days of the CV reigning supreme in the police market is fading. After 14 years, we have started the conversion over to the Magnum. They don't make that anymore. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
papilgee4evaeva Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 They don't make that anymore. Or maybe he meant Charger...? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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